January 1
adventure about to start
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!
Today Ed and I start off on our adventure around the east cape to Rotorua. For those interested, you can find our daily maps here. It's roughly 450km total.
Day 1 - Gisborne to Tokomaru Bay
Day 2 - Tokomaru Bay to Hicks Bay
Day 3 - Hicks Bay to Opotiki
Day 4 - Opotiki to Rotorua
Now a little story about my bike. As you may know from my previous post, I bought this bike brand new from New Zealand, and I first saw it and rode it two days ago. It has these special pedals which clip into your shoes for extra power. I had never ridden with these clips on before, and I was just riding around my Uncle's backyard to test out the bike.
He has got this great yard with lots of flowers and plants, vegies and chickens. I rode down one side of the vegie patch and tried to ride up the other side, except it was a really narrow path. I lost control of the bike and it started to fall over. I hadn't gotten used to the pedals so I couldn't get my shoes unclipped in time, and I flattened my uncle's rose bushes! Consequently I now have some long scratches on my left arm, and a bit of a graze on my side.
I've now ridden the new bike about 10km around Gisborne, and have practised getting on and off, and am much more confident that I am ready for this trip. Ed probably thinks otherwise :)
Now some interesting things about living in New Zealand. Grocery shopping in New Zealand is a whole new experience. They have this huge discount store called PAK'nSAVE. The stores are massive, the aisles are huge, and the trolleys are about twice the size of the ours back home. You feel like a tiny kid pushing this huge trolley through the store. It's a bit of an inconvenience because in a busy shop you are fighting to get to the other side of the shops.
Another crazy (but good) thing these Kiwi's have is PAK'nSAVE Fuel. They are entirely self-serve fuel stations. You go up to the pump, put in your credit card, punch in your PAK'nSAVE 6c off petrol voucher code, select the amount of fuel you want (optional), and start filling up. When you're finished it spits out a receipt. It's a good system, once everyone knows how to use it. We held up about 3 or 4 cars just because it was our first time.
I have to go now about get showered and fed for the first day of our ride. I expect some comments from you lots by the time I next check my email!
Today Ed and I start off on our adventure around the east cape to Rotorua. For those interested, you can find our daily maps here. It's roughly 450km total.
Day 1 - Gisborne to Tokomaru Bay
Day 2 - Tokomaru Bay to Hicks Bay
Day 3 - Hicks Bay to Opotiki
Day 4 - Opotiki to Rotorua
Now a little story about my bike. As you may know from my previous post, I bought this bike brand new from New Zealand, and I first saw it and rode it two days ago. It has these special pedals which clip into your shoes for extra power. I had never ridden with these clips on before, and I was just riding around my Uncle's backyard to test out the bike.
He has got this great yard with lots of flowers and plants, vegies and chickens. I rode down one side of the vegie patch and tried to ride up the other side, except it was a really narrow path. I lost control of the bike and it started to fall over. I hadn't gotten used to the pedals so I couldn't get my shoes unclipped in time, and I flattened my uncle's rose bushes! Consequently I now have some long scratches on my left arm, and a bit of a graze on my side.
I've now ridden the new bike about 10km around Gisborne, and have practised getting on and off, and am much more confident that I am ready for this trip. Ed probably thinks otherwise :)
Now some interesting things about living in New Zealand. Grocery shopping in New Zealand is a whole new experience. They have this huge discount store called PAK'nSAVE. The stores are massive, the aisles are huge, and the trolleys are about twice the size of the ours back home. You feel like a tiny kid pushing this huge trolley through the store. It's a bit of an inconvenience because in a busy shop you are fighting to get to the other side of the shops.
Another crazy (but good) thing these Kiwi's have is PAK'nSAVE Fuel. They are entirely self-serve fuel stations. You go up to the pump, put in your credit card, punch in your PAK'nSAVE 6c off petrol voucher code, select the amount of fuel you want (optional), and start filling up. When you're finished it spits out a receipt. It's a good system, once everyone knows how to use it. We held up about 3 or 4 cars just because it was our first time.
I have to go now about get showered and fed for the first day of our ride. I expect some comments from you lots by the time I next check my email!
comments
I'm glad you are having a good time! Hehe...I can just imagine you the first time you were on that bike! Anyway...have a fun first day riding with Ed!!!
- Andrea
Sounds like you guys are having an awesome time. Hope you had a fantastic NYE. Enjoy your ride and cant wait for you to get home so we can hear all about it and see all the awesome photos im sure you will be taking!
- Dannii
hi gang hope you having a good time. this message is for elli nunna misses you heaps buba kiss kiss blar blar blar pretty elli knows what I,m saying love nunna xxxoooxxxoooxxxooo
- mum
I can see a travel documentary in this "Grocery Stores of the World", or maybe a Getaway style travel show. Every week you could go to the exotic grocery shopping capitals of the world, Paris, Milan, Minsk, Prauge, Calcutta buying groceries :) I'm glad you guys are having fun, and i'm also glad my new job gives me internet access and time to use it!
- Brian
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